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Newt Gingrich: Lock up the leakers

(Fox News) – The leaking of evidence about the Manchester bombing should be the final straw.

These leaks came from the professional intelligence community – not the Trump White House.

The leaks are proof that the deep state of professional bureaucrats is so out of control it believes it can break the law at will.

This destructive lawlessness is reinforced, fed, and strengthened by the elite media’s hunger for sensational stories at the expense of the safety and security of our country and of our allies.

The number of unnamed sources who now populate front page sensational “scoops” is a sickening commentary on the decline of patriotism, professionalism, and belief in the rule of law.

One destructive result of this kind of illegal behavior is that the number of allies willing to share secrets and intelligence with America will decline. If you think your classified information is going to end up on the front page of the Washington Post or the New York Times, why would you risk sharing it with the irresponsible and unprofessional Americans? Your investigation, your sources, and the very lives of your agents could be endangered by American arrogance and law breaking.

The enabler in this destructive lawlessness is the news media. Fred Friendly, who was Edward R. Murrow’s producer, used to say just because you have the right to say or write something doesn’t mean it is the right thing to do.

The elite media has completely forgotten Friendly’s standard and is using the First Amendment’s freedom of the press as an excuse for publishing unending destructive leaks and smears.

Part of the problem is the elite media’s desperation to undermine and attack President Trump and his team. The growing number of stories based on unnamed or anonymous sources is just further proof of the media’s mania.

President Trump was right to challenge the news media to only print stories they could source by name. He knew that 90 percent of the attack stories would disappear because no one would take responsibility for the smears, lies, and innuendos.

The political attack stories are disgusting, but national security leaks are downright dangerous.

The solution is to start arresting and trying people who violate their oath of secrecy.

Historically, the American government took classified information seriously. Americans who fought in World War II and who defended freedom throughout the Cold War (including in Korea and Vietnam) guarded classified information with their lives. They understood that loose lips do in fact sink ships.

President Trump is exactly right to ask Attorney General Sessions and the Justice Department to begin investigating every leak that contains classified information.

It is time to once again get serious about protecting America’s secrets as a key step toward protecting American lives.

Newt Gingrich is a Fox News contributor. A Republican, he was speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999.